Want To Run For Sachem School Board?

Residents of the Sachem School District who wish to run for office on the Board of Education in 2013-14 must have their petitions for candidacy submitted to the district clerk's office by April 22, according to district clerk Carol Adelberg.

This year, three seats are open for election currently occupied by Michael Timo, Sal Tripi and Anthony Falco. All three candidates will be running for re-election.

Prospective candidates aren't legally obligated but encouraged to pick up official petition forms at the district clerk's office, located at the Samoset address, 51 School Street in Lake Ronkonkoma. The forms come with necessary expenditure forms and a media form for inclusion in Newsday's election guide.

"It has a lot of information on there," Adelberg said. "It would certainly be helpful if [candidates] did [pick them up]."

Anyone running for school board must have the official signatures of qualified Sachem district voters in the minimum amount equivalent to 2% of the total voter turnout last year, according to law. That means prospective candidates must gather at least 168 signatures to make the 2% turnout number. Those signatures must also have a valid address. Additionally the petition form (if you choose not to use the clerk's packet) must include:

• name and residence of the candidate
• whether the candidate is running for a full term
• the specific office for which the candidate is running
• the specific seat the candidate is running for

Qualifications needed to run for the Sachem board are:

• must be able to read and write
• must be a qualified voter of the district
• a resident of the school district for at least one year
• must not be an employee of the district
• must not share a household with another member of the board
• must not have been removed from office of another district office within one year of the May 2013 election.

The petitions are due in Adelberg's office by no later than 5 p.m. on April 22.